


Sweetpea

by Morethancupcake



Series: Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme [2]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe, Betrayal, Chef Benny Lafitte, Domestic Fluff, Drunk Dean, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Jealousy, Light Angst, M/M, Moving In Together, Protectiveness, Writer Castiel, soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-14
Updated: 2018-01-14
Packaged: 2019-03-04 20:50:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,922
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13372821
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Morethancupcake/pseuds/Morethancupcake
Summary: Of course, Dean had to come back." “You shouldn't be scared, you know.” Rufus smiles at him and plays with what's left of his food. “We all see the way that boy looks at you. He's just as smitten as you are.”“I know.” He thinks about Castiel's breath on his skin, at night, their legs brushing under the covers. “I know.” "





	Sweetpea

**Author's Note:**

> This work was commissioned. Again, thank you so much for your kindness, your patience and your trust. I truly appreciate it.
> 
> This story is a sequel. I strongly advise you to read the first one, or I'm afraid nothing will really make sense.
> 
> A few swear words here and there, hence the mature warning.
> 
> Disclaimers : this is not a Destiel story. Do not read expecting a Destiel happy end. In this story Dean is in a bad place, and makes stupid decisions, but no character bashing please.

Life with Castiel, Benny discovers, is simple in a way he isn't used to.

They don't stupidly move in together, they don't follow the usual pizza and movie routine every Saturday, they don't grab at each other, scared to miss something, anything.

Castiel walks to the restaurant every day, works there drinking tea or coffee, and seems happy to smile and just be.

Benny understands, he understands how soothing their afternoons can be, he enjoys them.

Nothing about Castiel is loud, terrifying, burning.

 

“I need to ask you for something.”

Castiel waits for him to take a bowl, and sits with him on the floor, next to the fire. It's still too cold for them to stay in the cabin at night, but he discovered they both enjoy the silence, the peace. Outside, the snow makes everything blue, perfect.

Benny just smiles and waits.

“I'm going back to the city. I need to visit my brother, and to arrange for my things to be shipped here.”

“And you need me ?”

“I need you to take me to the airport.” Castiel blows on his bowl, playing with his food. He doesn't look worried, and Benny wants to purr at the easiness, the gentleness between them. “But I also want you to rent me this place. Properly. I can't just live here for free.”

“You can. And you are.” 

Castiel is still huffing a little when Benny kisses him and tastes the wine sauce on his lips.

 

Bobby looks happy when Castiel tells him, that night. They all share a cup of coffee, and Benny still feels a little exposed when Castiel holds his hand, when he asks him, voice a whisper, if he wants sugar and cream, and when he chides him for grabbing another handful of sweets from the bowl.

Bobby doesn't care, though. He looks happy to have Castiel sleeping in the guest room, happy to call him son and bully him for the rest of the Winter, and whatever Castiel told him was apparently enough to make him change his mind about their relationship.

Sam is another story.

And Benny feels sorry for the guy, who's now worrying about Dean, and about Castiel. Sam loves Castiel, like a brother, like a best friend. He wants him happy, but a part of him seems set on seeing him happy with Dean and only Dean.

After a while, he excuses himself and goes to his room.

“You let that idiot figure out what an idiot he is by himself.” Bobby frowns and grumbles into his mug. “Benny, if you're not here on Sunday for dinner, I'm going to be mad at you.”

 

Benny knows what people think. That he's a rebound, he's just someone Castiel uses to forget his real love, that he's taking advantage of Castiel's weakness.

It makes them laugh, when they compare stories, when people feel the right to come and share their opinions.

 

“I don't care about what ifs.” Castiel looks vibrant, here in the forest. He looks real, he looks more alive than the people in town whispering about them, more vibrant than Benny himself. “Maybe we were meant to be. Maybe it was just dumb luck. I don't really care, do you ?”

Benny tried to imagine Castiel, shy Castiel, baby of the family.

Here, he watches a man he's in love with, larger than life, and he shakes his head, happy.

 

The first time Castiel cries for him, he feels awkward, his body too big, and yet not capable of preventing the tears. It hurts something in his ribcage, to see Castiel's eyes full of tears, his smile tight.

He doesn't look back, goes to his gate still dressed like the new Castiel, beard and wool beanie, and Benny wants to run and to wrap him in his arms, and to apologize again and again for the hurt he knows he's not really responsible for.

He stands alone in the small airport, his coffee cup in hand, and he wishes never to see Castiel cry in his arms ever again.

 

Life without Castiel, Benny discovers, is dull and not something he enjoys much.

He tries to, because he feels like an idiot for moping around, he feels stupid for Castiel's pillow he grabs during the night, he feels stupid for the little glimpse of the man he finds in his house, the dirty coffee cup left on a table, the mittens forgotten in the garage, the old boots.

Castiel is like a ghost haunting him, and he hates the longing, the sadness deep in his bones.

 

Dean calls him at night.

At first, when the familiar name appears on his phone, Benny wonders if it's a joke, the universe trying to completely screwing him over.

He's out of his shower, towel still in hand, and, he realizes, he wants to ignore it, to wrap himself up into the silence, and the snow.

Dean doesn't leave a message, and Benny goes to the kitchen for a cup of warm cocoa.

 

Castiel calls him during his break, and he chatters about his brother, and the few things he would like to bring back, the things he wants to put in the cabin, the things Gabriel offered to buy.

Benny likes it, he liked to eat his sandwich and to offer his input, he likes to imagine Castiel's life colliding with his, Castiel living in the cabin in spring, and hopefully with him at the end of Fall.

“Dean called.” 

Castiel stops, and waits.

“I didn't pick up, and he didn't leave a message. It was way too late, he was probably drunk.”

“Probably.” Castiel doesn't sound like himself. A little too cold. 

“I guess he didn't try...”

“No. No, he didn't.” 

No matter how hard they try to keep the conversation going, their little lunch is ruined.

 

He busies himself, because things needs to be taken care of, and the alternative, waiting for Castiel in the small airport is not something he can do without making himself crazy.

He smiles at the message Castiel sent in the morning, and goes on with his day. 

He closes the restaurant for the first time it what feels like months, and attacks the huge pile of laundry, the dirty dishes left in the sink, all the little things Castiel will notice.

 

And finally, when it's time, he takes his car and leaves.

And if his hands shakes, no one has to know.

And if his eyes are burning when Castiel holds his face in his hands and kisses him, in the safety of his car, no one has to know.

 

“I missed the smell of your house.” Castiel puts his bag in Benny's room, and stretches. He looks at ease, he goes to the tiny bathroom and starts the shower, grabbing his soft flannel pants on the chair in the corner, his socks forgotten next to the hamper.

Benny is still shaking, but he tries to hide it, and the bathroom is full of steam anyway.

When they fall into bed, warm and smelling like eucalyptus, Benny knows Castiel missed him too, maybe even more.

 

He tries to bargain, to have Castiel stay with him for the night, he wants to keep him here, safe, in his bed, but the other man laughs and tries to escape.

“You have work in the morning !” 

“So we'll wake up together, and you'll work with me.”

“You're a dangerous man, Benjamin.”

 

Castiel is asleep, tucked under his arm, when the message arrives.

 

“So he's back, uh ?” Ash looks at him with something close to pity, but he stays right were he is, and orders enough food to make one man sick.

Benny tries to crack a joke, but he can't find any. The usual crowd seems to know about it, Dean Winchester being back, because they are all here, both for support and to keep the gossips away from his establishment.

He feels comforted.

He feels worried.

 

Castiel's hands had been cold, too cold, and he had looked ready to be sick, dropping him on his way to Bobby's.

“It's days like this I regret not having my own car.” 

The jokes scrapes him wrong, he knows it's mostly Castiel trying to make him laugh, but it's also Castiel knowing Dean probably knows already, or will probably guess, watching him drive Benny's car.

Benny doesn't want to be scared, he isn't, in a way, but he can't help but remember Castiel's hollow eyes, the bruise on his face.

Outside, the snow makes everything difficult, the wind punishing.

 

“You shouldn't be scared, you know.” Rufus smiles at him and plays with what's left of his food. “We all see the way that boy looks at you. He's just as smitten as you are.”

“I know.” He thinks about Castiel's breath on his skin, at night, their legs brushing under the covers. “I know.”

 

Dean arrives just when he's about to close. He looks heavier, older. If anything, he really is starting to look like the old John.

He smells like him, too, smoke and whiskey, and when he smiles, it looks like a mountain lion getting ready for the kill.

“You have a few seconds to spare ?”

“Of course.” He doesn't say brother, he knows he doesn't have the right to. Not anymore.

“Sammy told you I was back, uh ?”

“From wherever you were, yes.” The coffee machine is down for the night, and there's no way he'll get Dean more booze, so he grabs two bottles of Coke, and shows him the door. “We'll drink outside, my lift is probably on the way.”

Dean chuckles at that. He looks amused, and Benny knows better. Many bar fights, memorable fights, started with that attitude.

 

They sit outside, the cold biting at their skin. Dean sips at his bottle, still giggling to himself.

“You and Cas.” He actually laughs under his breath. “Can't say I saw that coming. If Cas was going to cheat on me with someone, I always figured it was going to be Sam. They're more alike. I mean, he's never been into chubby bears before.”

“He seems to like them rednecks.” Benny clenches his teeth at the insult. Dean knows him, knows his insecurities, and isn't afraid to hit where it hurts. 

“Yeah. Can't say I saw that coming either, him moving into that little shithole you have up there.”

“Careful.”

“Oh ? Or what ? You'll beat me up ?”

“That's your specialty.”

Dean sighs, and the fight leaves him all of a sudden. He's not John anymore, he's just Dean Winchester, sad, and tired. 

“Touché, man. Motherfucking touché.”

 

They drive to the Roadhouse, and Benny doesn't try to hide the fact he checks on Castiel, and tells him where he is, and why.

“There's a code, man. I can't believe I have to tell you this.”

“I know. Believe me, I know.” Ellen brings them their drink, whiskey for Dean, another Coke for him. “But you were gone for quite a while.”

“So what ? You guys fell in love or some shit ?”

“Yes.” Dean looks like he wants to yell, he wants to fight, but takes a sip instead. “I just learned to know Castiel. We spent time together.” And because he hates feeling like the monster here, because he's tired and hurting, too. “I was there when he had to cancel the wedding.”

“Give me a fucking break.” It lack fire. Dean rubs his hands on his face, and it dawns on Benny how exhausted he looks. 

“You're staying at Bobby's ?”

“Yeah, imagine how fun that's going to be.” He glares at the few people staring, at Ellen challenging him to start something. “Cas is packing up, it'll probably be too awkward for him to stay.”

“Probably, yeah.”

Ellen put food in front of them, and even if it's late, even if Benny doesn't want to, there's still a part of him feeling sorry for the man he used to call his best friend.

 

“I don't know what I thought. I messed up. I messed up so bad, and then I ran away. Cas shouldn't take me back. I wouldn't.”

“You should've stayed.” It's not a lie. He can't find in himself to lie.

“Yeah.”

 

“It's not like I was a monk. Few weeks ago I was still living with my girlfriend and her kid. Always the hypocrite.”

“Did you tell Castiel ?” 

“No. No, why ?”

“It'll hurt him.”

Dean looks hurt, there's no other explanation for his wide eyes and the sad turn of his mouth.

“Oh and what, so you're a specialist now ?”

 

Dean is at his second glass, and even after his burger, whatever he had before definitely takes its toll. He's half asleep on his side of the booth when Castiel opens the door, and catches them.

 

The first thing Benny notices, is his own flannel, too big and a little too long, and his beanie Castiel keeps stealing whenever he can. Then, he notices the hard lines, Castiel's frown.

When Castiel puts a hand on his shoulder and softly tell him to come home, he doesn't think about checking if Dean notices, if it hurts him to see them together.

 

“You don't smell like beer.” Cas is wearing his glasses, and he looks smaller, exhausted. There are a few boxes in the backseat, and Benny cups the back of his head, lightly scratching his scalp the way they both like.

“I had four bottles of soda, I think. I'm mostly made of sugar.”

“Is it to early in our relationship for me to joke about how sweet you are ?”

 

It makes him laugh, and he enjoys the small smile Castiel give him in return, hopeful.

 

“I figured most of my things could stay in your attic, if you're still okay with it. I could always move some things to the cabin, but I'm afraid of the mold getting to it and...”

“Hey.” 

Benny guides him to his arms, and even in the middle of the night, even standing under the neon in his freezing garage, it feels good to stop and breathe. 

“Hello.”

“Hello.”

“What about a shower ?”

 

“I don't... really want to talk about it in details. Not now.” Castiel is clingy, and it's a new facet of him, a Castiel looking younger, almost fragile, the exact opposite of the man entering the bar tonight, the man taking him home in front of Dean.

“We don't have to.” Benny leaves him to deal with his mop of hair, and takes care of the lights, and the heating. 

 

“I'm just...” Castiel accepts his hot bottle and seems happy just to bury himself under the covers to wait for him. “I'm just glad we're here together, tonight.”

“I'm glad too.”

 

When he finishes brushing his teeth, Castiel is asleep on his side of the bed, mouth open, and Benny can't help but drag him into his arms.

 

“He thinks I'm doing it to hurt him.” Castiel is drinking his tea slowly, hair a mess, glasses firmly in place. It's the first time he brings the subject, so Benny doesn't turn, keeps his eyes on the stove, and gently stirs the oatmeal. “He thinks I'm going to change my mind, now that he's back.”

Benny guesses the questions, hidden between them, so he offers : “He just tried to pick a fight. Told me I wasn't your type, told me you were cheating on him. That was just talk. Nothing that serious.”

“He doesn't understand. Us.”

“No he doesn't.”

 

Benny tops Castiel's bowl with chopped dates and bananas, and the kitchen smells like cinnamon and tea.

 

“I think today, we should drive to Cain's and find you a dresser.” He doesn't mention the restaurant, he supposed he can take another day, he deserves it. Castiel sighs, and moves so he can rest his head on Benny's shoulder. They're both wearing the heavy socks Castiel tried to knit, their feet resting on the old coffee table.

“We a bigger teapot, too.”

Benny can't help but smile.

“So we'll get you a teapot.”

 

“You kicked the hornet's nest.” Cain hands him a cup of coffee, and stays with him next to the small heater. 

Castiel walks around, studies every piece of furniture, brushing his fingers on the wood, taking notes, calculating. Benny knows he already picked a favorite, he knows Castiel is just trying to be sure, always meticulous in everything he does.

“I did.”

When Castiel searches for his eyes, apparently happy with his final choice, Benny smiles and waves back. Content.

 

“You're going to be stubborn about rent, I can feel it.” Castiel looks happy, folding the last of his clothes in his new dresser. It makes the room feel smaller, but Benny likes it, he likes how it goes with his own furnitures, old and well used too.

It looks like a home.

“Just as stubborn as you can be.”

Castiel's phone rings, down in the kitchen, and they both ignore it.

 

“... need to stop calling me. This needs to stop, Dean. We're not kids anymore.”

Benny closes the kitchen door and goes back to the garage, where he busies himself .with the new shelves and the jars of preserve he needs to bring to the restaurant. When Castiel comes to look for him, he can't hide how upset he is. He doesn't want to.

“Benny ?” Castiel grabs him by his fleece jumper, and slowly guides him back inside.

“Yeah, sweetpea ?” He can help but cup Castiel's face. Can't help but want to make him happy.

“Take me to bed.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading ! I hope you liked it ! If so, please take a second and leave me kudos and a nice comment ? It makes my day !
> 
> You can find me on Tumblr (where you can reblog this story if you want) :
> 
>  http://iwanttopizzamanyou.tumblr.com/post/169702286694/sweetpea
> 
>  
> 
> While I have your attention, please remember to drink enough water, and don't forget your meds if you need them !


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